Lawmaker Wants to Limit Parents From Not Immunizing Their Kids in Maine

Nationally, nearly 2 percent of parents chose not to immunize their kindergartners for non-medical reasons last year. In Maine, 5 percent of parents of public and private school children decided against immunization, according to the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

The article continuesby saying Rep. Ralph Tucker (D-Brunswick) wants to introduce a bill that would get rid of non-medical exemptions for vaccines, including exemptions for both religious and philosophical reasons. Hopefully getting that 5% non vaccination rate down!

It's a very divided issue. On one side is pretty much all health professionals including the Centers for Disease Control. They say that not getting your kid immunized could lead to more deadly diseases. Maine already has one of the highest rates of whooping cough.

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But on the other side (a minority) are parents that say there is a connection between vaccines and autism. Something health professionals have disputed, but some passionately believe this to be true.

The World Health Organization even has a webpage encouraging people to embrace the facts about vaccines, and not the myths. Among the facts cited is that if we stop vaccination, deadly diseases will return.“When people are not vaccinated, infectious diseases that have become uncommon can quickly come back to haunt us,” the World Health Organization said.

The problem is that the kids who don't get vaccinated go to public schools, and all it takes is one sick child...and it will spread - quickly.

Governor Paul LePage had vetoed a bill to end exemptions, but congressmen are hopeful the new Governor will allow the bill to pass.